


too far under the stars

by respira



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Multi, also minor warning but there's a really brief reference to jordan but he's not explicitly mentioned, i miss shadowhunters lmfao, mundane AU, this is just.......... soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-12
Updated: 2018-09-12
Packaged: 2019-07-11 09:55:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15969941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/respira/pseuds/respira
Summary: Simon is the sun, Maia is the moon, and Jace is helpless in their universe.He doesn't know that he's the stars to complete them.





	too far under the stars

**Author's Note:**

> i would suggest listening to venus by sleeping at last!!

Maybe it was better off that Jace lived the rest of his life alone.

That’s exactly what he said when he visited his sister’s room on a Sunday night. Despite Isabelle’s complaints that she had to be at the lab early the next morning, Jace barged into the bedroom (with a knock and a warm greeting) and collapsed on Isabelle’s bed. Isabelle was this close to kicking Jace out, but sisters comfort their heartbroken brothers--at least, that’s what Jace argued. He also offered to treat her to breakfast and coffee.

And so Jace continued to tell the story of how he was utterly smitten with the beautiful Maia Roberts, but also very attracted to the amazing Simon Lewis--despite Isabelle having heard it already. But Izzy learned something new that night: according to her dear brother, Maia Roberts and Simon Lewis were both taken.

By each other.

Jace groaned, resting his head rather harshly against the wall. Isabelle hissed, complaining that it was late at night and some college students might want to get some sleep without any noisy neighbors getting in the way. Jace, unbothered, continued to insist that his chances at love were over--and he was only 22.

Isabelle threw her pillow at Jace’s face. “Stop being overdramatic,” she said.

Jace grabbed the pillow and wrapped his arms around it. “You just don’t understand, Iz,” Jace whined. “I’ll never be able to find love again!”

Isabelle raised a brow at her brother. “You haven’t even gone on a single date with either of them.”

Jace scoffed. “That’s beside the point.”

“Do you even know if they’re in a relationship?” Izzy inquired. She yanked the pillow from Jace’s arms, much to his dismay, and she rested the pillow behind her head and let her feet dangle off of the bed. Jace took the opportunity to lay his head on Isabelle’s lap, facing in the same direction as his sister.

“Well, no,” Jace murmured. “But it’s clear as day! Anyone with eyes can see that they’re together, Iz.”

“ _I_ don’t notice them.”

“You don’t count, you’re a STEM student who’s in the lab almost all the time.”

“Hey!”

“Love you,” Jace said with a smile. “But still, it’s undeniable. The two people I’m into are dating each other. I’m out of the picture, if I was even in it. There’s no hope for me.”

“Jace,” Isabelle said with a sigh. Jace knew it couldn’t be good. She was using _that_ voice. “You like Maia. You like Simon. Just go for it. What could go wrong?”

Although sometimes blunt, Jace appreciated his sister’s advice. After all, she was the smartest of the four--Jace would be a fool not to listen to what Isabelle says, whether it be a parable or an offhand comment.

“Hey, Iz,” said Jace, attempting to change the conversation. “How’d my set up go?”

“Oh, wonderful,” Isabelle said. Jace’s attempt to divert her attention was obvious, but she let him get away with it. “I got a waitress’s number.”

Jace turned and looked up at his sister. “I set you up on a date with Clary Fray,” he said, eyebrows furrowed with confusion.

“And I appreciate it,” she replied, “but she’s just not for me.”

“Look, I know things with Clary and I are kind of… messy, to say the least, but I thought you two would hit it off. You quickly became friends when she was a freshman!”

Isabelle laughed, and she began to play with Jace’s hair. “That’s different. No offense, brother, but white people suck.” Jace glared at her slightly, a smile growing on his lips. “Clary’s okay and all but I don’t want to _date_ her. Plus, I’m pretty sure she’s straight and just experimenting.”

“Gross,” Jace frowned. He looked back up at Izzy. “But the waitress is cool, right?”

A small smile appeared on Isabelle’s face as she looked away from Jace. “Yeah. Her name’s Aline.”

“Penhallow?” Jace gasped. Isabelle nodded. “No way! She and I were coworkers at Java Jones.”

Isabelle raised a brow. “You’re telling me you could have set me up with a cute girl over a year ago?”

“Alright, my bad,” Jace laughed. He poked his sister’s stomach and Isabelle giggled. “I hope things work out between you two.”

“Thanks, Jace,” Isabelle replied. “I hope things work out between you and Maia and Simon. You’re gonna talk to them tomorrow, right? Tell them how you feel?”

Jace looked up to the ceiling and took a deep sigh. “Yeah,” he said. “You’re right. What could go wrong?”

 

* * *

 

Things were going terribly wrong for Simon that Monday morning.

Granted, Monday mornings were always terrible, but this one was particularly gruesome. Being a music major had its perks, and Simon loves music more than anything in the world, but sometimes it stresses him out to the point where he can’t function properly.

Today, unfortunately, is one of those days.

He’d forgotten his coffee in his van--this marked the beginning of an unpleasant day. It isn’t often that Simon gets to go treat himself for a coffee at McDonald’s. But he was running late to his class and his sheet music was already threatening to fall out of his guitar case ( _You have a_ backpack _, Simon_ ), and his gorgeous, creamy, sugar-free, one-dollar coffee had to say goodbye. He’d only taken a single sip.

Maia wasn’t going to be happy about his tardiness, but Simon pushed that thought away to the back of his head.

He checks his watch. 9:33 AM. Simon drops to his knees, quickly snaps open his guitar case, and shoves his sheet music inside. He couldn’t care less if they were crumpled. 9:34. Simon starts running to his classroom, hoping and praying that he hasn’t missed anything important. His professor was punctual and Simon was certain class was already in session.

So far, Simon’s five minutes late and he feels like the band room is a lot further than it would be on a normal day.

Simon hoped Maia was having a better morning than he was. Despite working late shifts at the Hunter’s Moon, she always manages to wake up bright and early and make it to campus in time for her anthropology lecture, no matter where she crashes the night before. Whether it’s at the Lewis’ apartment, Luke’s apartment, or Magnus’s dorm, Maia always gets to school on time.

Simon admires his girlfriend so much.

He’s seven minutes late when he reaches the door. Simon takes a second to catch his breath and wonder how in the _world_ anyone managed to enjoy running for sport, and he quietly opens the door. His professor is lecturing about the song the students are supposed to be writing as Simon makes his way to his seat as quietly as possible.

Simon can’t help but notice that Jace Lightwood is staring at him, but Simon tries his best to keep his composure. It takes a second, but Simon manages to take the seat to Jace’s right without messing up.

“What’d I miss?” Simon whispered.

Jace stares for a bit. Did Simon have something on his face?

“Um,” Jace says. “He wants us all to use the same time signature, but we have a minimum of fifty measures.”

“Which time signature?”

“Six-eight.”

“Dammit,” Simon groaned softly, closing his eyes. He was not in the mood to write a rock ballad at the moment. He looked back up and gave Jace a small smile. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“Yeah….” Jace murmured, not breaking eye contact. “Yeah, no problem.”

It takes both of them an equal amount of time to look away. Simon manages to do so first, swiftly turning his head to look at their professor giving instructions. His leg starts to shake--the right one, of course, so it might be harder for Jace to notice. Jace, on the other hand, continued to sneak glances at Simon. Luckily for him, he was far too determined to _not_ look at Jace to notice.

Class is over in a little over an hour, considering that Simon was tardy. Most students have walked out already, but some, like Simon, are still packing their things. Simon is on the floor, placing his sheet music in his guitar case as neatly as possible this time. Jace has just finished packing, so Simon decides to strike a conversation.

“Hey, Jace,” he calls.

Jace is already on his way out the door. He has his sheet music neatly placed in a folder and his guitar case is slung around his shoulder, but he quickly turns around to give Simon his undivided attention.

“I just, uh, I want to thank you for helping me today,” Simon says, “and I know you didn’t do so much in retrospect, but if I look back now you did _so much_ figuratively, and that was vital information and I’m sure if I hadn’t known I wouldn’t be able to write this song.”

Jace is in _deep._

He’s so entranced by the way Simon speaks, by the way he moves. His hands are always moving in small, circular motions, and Jace can’t help but notice that his body movies with every word that comes out of Simon’s mouth. Jace’s eyes move to Simon’s arms and the rather tight-fitting shirt, but Jace forces himself to look up. He notices that Simon smiles when he speaks sometimes, and he speaks quickly--a nervous habit, Jace supposes. He believes he’s heard Simon make a comment about how he’s a generally nervous person, but Jace can’t remember. His eyes travel from Simon’s lips to his eyes and he really can’t remember what Simon was talking about until he realizes that Simon is stepping closer.

“I was, uh,” Simon continued, “I was wondering if you would--”

Simon trips over his guitar case and lands harshly on the ground. Immediately, his day went from terrible to the worst it could have been.  _Really, Simon? Falling face-first in front of the guy you like?_

Jace hurriedly places his own guitar case on the ground and scrambles to help Simon up. There are so many words rushing out of Jace’s mouth, phrases like “SimonohmyGod” and “Simonareyouokay,” but Simon just stares at the ground for a while before dusting his hands off. Simon quickly pushes off the ground--right into Jace’s nose.

Simon felt he might as well call himself Alexander; he was having his own terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. He had overslept, left his coffee on the subway, he was late to his favorite class, he tripped in front of the guy he likes, and he just knocked that same guy in the face with his head. Simon very much wanted to drop dead, but the pain he was feeling in the crown of his head was sharp and too painful to ignore.

And Jace was bleeding.

 _Holy shit_ , was he bleeding.

“ _Jaceholyshit_.” Now words were flying out of Simon’s mouth. His hands were moving everywhere but had no destination--what should he do? Jace was clutching his nose and Simon was still kneeling, making incoherent noises and frantically looking around. Simon decided to take off his flannel and he practically shoved it in Jace’s face. Jace looked up at him, blood starting to reach his lips, while Simon rummaged through his case and his pockets.

“Earbuds, where are my earbuds?” Simon muttered to himself. He found them in his back pocket and pulled them out, quickly getting up to stand behind Jace. Simon wrapped the wire of the earphones around Jace’s head, grabbed his and Jace’s things, and helped Jace up from the ground.

“You’re gonna be okay,” Simon said, mostly speaking to himself. He held on to Jace’s shoulders as they walked, looking at the ground and continuing to mutter to himself. Amidst his thoughts, he suddenly stopped.

“What is it?” Jace asked with a nasal voice.

“NYU has a nurse’s office, right?” Simon asked, looking up at him.

Jace tried not to smile. He’s in  _so_ deep.

 

* * *

 

“Well, I can’t say I expected to see you here.”

Maia put down the glass she was cleaning and smiled at Magnus.

“I guess I’m just full of surprises,” she responded.

Magnus sighed through his nose and took a seat at the bar. “I’ll have the usual,” he said.

“Resorting to alcohol in the mornings now?” Maia quipped. She grabbed a glass and began preparing the drink for her friend as Magnus let out a low chuckle.

“I’m a law student, mango,” Magnus said with a light roll of his eyes. He rested his head on the palm of his hand. “And you know what they say: desperate times call for desperate measures.”

Maia set the drink in from of Magnus. “That thesis is really kicking your ass, isn’t it?” She put away the towelette she was using and rested her arms on the table, giving Magnus her undivided attention.

“Oh, you have _no_ idea.” Magnus took a large swig and then looked at Maia with a solemn smile. “How’d the anthropology lecture go?”

“Had to leave early for an emergency shift,” Maia gestured absentmindedly at the Hunter’s Moon.

“They couldn’t ask your boy to do it?” Magnus asked with a raised brow.

Maia scoffed, to which Magnus smiled. Magnus picked up the habit of calling Maia’s coworker “her boy” after he insisted that they’re obviously interested in each other. Maia tried to convince Magnus that her coworker, Jace, was new and intolerable, and she was just putting up with whatever he has to say. He doesn’t have that charming of a smile, his eyes aren’t that pretty, his jokes aren’t that funny, and Maia’s not at all interested in Jace Lightwood.

Magnus, in all his wisdom, didn’t believe Maia for a second.

“They don’t ask newbies to take emergency shifts,” Maia responded after a cool minute. “But I’ll be alright. It was just for the hour and I can ask Gretel for her notes.”

“At least you got _your_ educational career together,” Magnus said with a smile. Maia laughed, looking down at the bar.

“How’s Alec?” she asked.

“He’s fine,” Magnus replied with a fond smile. “We haven’t been able to spend much quality time together due to the overbearing work on our separate theses, but we both know it’ll be worth it in the end. How’s Simon?”

“I’m actually not sure,” Maia said with a cock of her head. “I crashed at Luke’s last night, but I assume he’s all right. I hope. He should be.” Maia frowned slightly. “Right?”

Magnus shrugged his shoulders slightly and took another sip of his drink. “I’m sure he’ll be fine. Simon never gets into too much trouble. He better not, at least.”

Maia smirked. “Alright, _Dad_.”

“Hey, now,” Magnus retorted. “I’ll have you know, I am an amazing father figure. Simon can vouch for me.”

Maia raised an eyebrow. “You’re five years older than him.”

“And no less fatherly, my dear mango.”

“Whatever you say,” Maia replied with a playful roll of her eyes. She glanced at the clock and looked back at Magnus with a small smile.

“Hour’s almost up,” she said. “I gotta go meet Simon. Wanna head out?”

Magnus got up from his seat. “I’ll drive you.”

“This is New York. You don’t have a car. You can’t even afford one.”

“I like to think I’m already earning those big lawyer bucks so I can keep myself from dropping out.”

Maia laughed, grabbed her jacket, and led Magnus out the door. Magnus pulled her into a hug, Maia’s hair seemingly less large due to the broadness of his shoulders, and they both went their separate ways. Maia decided to check her phone once she made it to the subway, only to see many texts from Simon.

 **Simon Lewis** ****  
**8:56 AM** **  
** good morning! i’m on my way to class.

 **Simon Lewis** ****  
**8:59 AM**   
oh shit i almost forgot

 **Simon Lewis  
** **8:59 AM**   
i hope your anthropology lecture is okay!

 **Simon Lewis** ****  
**9:01 AM** **  
** and no i’m not texting and driving!!!

 **Simon Lewis** ****  
**9:13 AM** **  
** a little bit later to class than expected, but i’ll be fine!

 **Simon Lewis** ****  
**9:23 AM** **  
** ok i’m late

 **Simon Lewis** ****  
**9:23 AM** **  
** i left my,, fukcin coffee in the car :(

 **Simon Lewis** ****  
**9:24 AM**   
i hope this day is treating you better than it is me, mi luna luminosa! ojalá que todo te vaya bien!! te quiero ❤️

 **Simon Lewis** ****  
**11:06 AM** **  
** bit of an emergency. meet me at the clinic at nyu? i hope you’re doing okay!

Maia tried not to let the worry get to her. Simon was always the type to play things down so Maia wouldn’t worry, but it just made her even more anxious. She tapped her fingers against her thigh and she wanted nothing more than to make it to her destination as soon as possible. Luckily, the journey from the Hunter’s Moon and the clinic at NYU didn’t seem so long once Maia managed to worry a little less. The concern was still very much there, however, and Maia let out a loud sigh of relief when she met Simon in the waiting room.

“Oh, babe, I’m so glad you’re okay,” Maia said as she embraced Simon tightly.

“Yeah, I’m fine,  _m’amor,_ ” Simon said with a small smile. “It’s another person that isn’t. But how are you? How has your day been?”

“I’m fine, it was alri--wait, who’s hurt?”

“Oh.” Simon pursed his lips and started swaying slightly. Maia, arms now crossed, raised a brow at her boyfriend as he stuffed his hands in his jean pockets and shrugged. He tried offering her an attempt at a smile. It didn’t work. “Um. Your boy. Our boy. Jace Lightwood.”

“When was the last time you talked to Magnus?”

“Last night,” Simon replied.

Maia groaned, letting her forehead quickly fall into Simon’s shoulder. “He didn’t say much, I swear!” Simon said, slowly running his hands up and down her arms. “Just that you happen to be--”

“That’s already too much,” Maia whined softly. “I swear I’m never talking to him again.”

“ _M’amor,_ ” Simon quickly interjected. “Magnus didn’t do anything bad, _solo dijo que él es tu propio hombre. Y también que estás enamorada de él, pero_ Maia--”

“He said _what_?”

“He said that Jace was ‘your boy’ and that you’re in l--”

“No, I got that.” Maia closed her eyes and exhaled through her nose. “I’m not...” She swallowed, then said in a low whisper, “ _No estoy enamorada de él._ ”

Simon smiled at Maia’s almost non-existent “s”s. His mother would be proud of the accent Maia picked up from all her time at the Lewis’s apartment. Shaking that thought out of his head, he wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and rested their foreheads together. “You don’t have to be,” he whispered back. “But Jace is bleeding,” he said at a normal volume. “Very much so. Like, he hasn’t stopped since I slammed my head into his nose.”

Maia pulled away, looking up at him. “You _slammed_ your _head_ into his--”

“Anyway!” Simon grabbed Maia’s hand and they made their way over to the front desk. “Hi, we’re here to see Jace Lightwood?”

 

* * *

 

Jace lied down on the couch, arm dangling off the edge and swaying slowly. Isabelle was on the other end of the couch reading her textbook, resting Jace’s legs on her lap. Alec was sitting on the floor, his laptop on the coffee table, as he contemplated throwing said laptop out the window.

A normal day for the Lightwood siblings.

Jace stared at the ceiling, still unable to come up with the right words to describe the situation. It’s been a few good minutes. Izzy was getting bored and he’s pretty sure Alec has completely forgotten about the both of them and continued working on his thesis.

“It’s a love story of the ages,” Jace said finally. “That’s what it is.”

Isabelle looked up from her book and at her brother. “Simon Lewis gave you a bloody nose and you call it a love story?”

There was a soothing cadence coming from Alec’s typing, and he started to speak without interrupting the rhythm. “You, Jace, are…a mess.”

Isabelle gestured to their older brother. “See? Alec gets it.”

Alec stopped typing suddenly, took a sip of his coffee, and looked up at his siblings. “You… have feelings for them, right?”

Jace sat up on the couch. “Yes. I--I like them a lot.”

Alec shrugged. “Ask them out on a date. See how it goes.”

Izzy shook her head, putting her bookmark between the pages of her book and closing it in the process. “Do _not_ ask them out on a date. Wait a bit or they’ll say yes out of pity, not because they like you.”

“Hm.” Alec contemplated for a moment, but whether it was about Jace’s situation or his thesis was unclear to his siblings. “No, spend time with them. You’ll strengthen your relationship with them.”

“Yeah, I’ll go with Alec’s idea,” Jace said.

Izzy groaned and let her head fall back against the couch. “You two disagreeing with me is racism. Please keep in mind that Alec got to date Magnus Bane because of some sort of God-given miracle, not because our dear brother is _suave_ and _charming_.”

“I’ll have you know,” Alec argued, typing quickly once again, “Magnus thinks I’m plenty charming. And we’re in love, so that negates your argument anyway!” Alec then stuck his tongue out at his younger sister like the mature, 25-year-old law student he is.

“Whatever,” Izzy replied with a roll of her eyes. “But Jace, please keep in mind who gives the best advice in this family. Don’t get mad when I say I told you so.”

“I’ll be fine, Iz!” Jace assured. “Just like you said.”

“That was before Maia Roberts and Simon Lewis visited you at the clinic because you got a bloody nose and you called it a ‘love story of the ages’.”

“I’ll still be fine. Just watch me.”

 

* * *

 

Maia was definitely not fine.

In fact, if she had to suffer another hour with Jace on the other end of the bar, she’s sure she just might explode. Their entire shift, he’d been cracking “funny” jokes and giving Maia awfully perfect smiles whenever they pass by each other in the bar. She wasn’t sure she could take any more of this to be honest.

Maia felt relief wash over her when she saw Luke walk into the bar. He smiled at her as he sat down at the bar and Maia could feel the tension leave her shoulders. Maia turned around to grab a bottle and prepare Luke his favorite drink, but Jace had already beat her to it. With a bright smile and a “hey, Dad,” Jace set the drink in front of Luke and then walked past Maia with a wink.

“Excuse me?” Luke called out, but Jace was already busy taking care of some other customers.

Maia chuckled as she walked over to Luke and rested her arms on the bar. “The step-dad life looking like trouble in paradise?”

Luke let out a small “mm” and took a sip of his drink. “Suddenly having four children is a lot, but it certainly does help that most of my step-children are adults and are… capable of taking care of themselves,” he said, glancing at Jace for a second. “Little Max is a different story, though.”

“It might help if you didn’t call him ‘Little Max’, you know. The boy is thirteen, he’s not that little.”

“That’s his name now! He’s gonna have it legally changed. Besides, ‘Little Max Lightwood-Garroway’ has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?”

Maia raised her eyebrows and took a sip of Luke’s drink. “Sounds like a mouthful.”

“I thought this was a judgement-free zone.”

Maia raised her hands in defeat. “Okay, okay, I will no longer criticize your parenting methods.” Luke laughed. “How’s the wife?” Maia asked.

Luke looked down and a small smile appeared on his face. It was so much more private, so much more soft, and Maia knew that only Maryse could bring those types of smiles out of Luke. Anyone could see that Luke and Maryse were very much in love. It made Maia happy to see Luke this happy.

“She’s good,” Luke replied. “She had a late night in the study but still insisted on taking Little Max to school. If I have to drive him to school every day until the end of his educational career so Maryse can get some sleep, then so be it.”

“Tell her I said hi, will you?”

“Will do.”

Luke’s phone buzzed and he took it out of his pocket with a deep sigh. “Ollie’s still at the precinct and she’s asking for help.” He looked up at Maia. “Should I go?”

“Tell her to take a break! You both deserve to go home to your respective wives.”

Luke nodded. “You’re right.”

Maia flashed a smile while she grabbed some glasses to clean. “Now get outta here! I don’t wanna see you in my bar.”

Luke got up from his seat with a laugh, and he raised his hand to bid Maia goodbye. Before getting out the door, he turned around to look at Jace. “Later, kiddo.”

Jace gasped. “Did he call me ‘kiddo’?!”

“Don’t get too excited,” Maia said with a small smile. Even though Luke was already out of the building, she could hear his chuckling as if he were right next to her.

“This is _huge_ , Maia. I need to start planning his father’s day gift, like, yesterday.”

Maia looked up from her glasses and at Jace with a confused look. “It’s mid-May. Shouldn’t you have been planning that already?”

Jace shrugged. “I always get my dad--um, Robert--a card. He’s never been one for sentiment unless it comes to my sister. She’s his favorite, so...”

“Isabelle, right?”

“Yeah.” Jace served a couple their drinks and looked back at Maia. “You know her?”

Maia concentrated on drying the glasses once again, trying to avoid Jace’s annoyingly pretty eyes. “Simon does. I’ve seen her around, though. She’s cute.”

This type of casual conversation was making Jace giddy. He liked this, he liked the comfort that came with hearing Maia’s voice and he couldn’t help but think of doing this in the future. Talking about nothing and everything with her and Simon, pillow talk…. Jace grabbed a rag and started wiping up the bar to keep himself from getting distracted. “Of course she’s cute, she’s my sister.”

Maia laughed and put the newly dried glasses away in the back of the bar. “And to think I thought we could have a conversation in which you didn’t mention your good looks.”

Jace suddenly stopped cleaning and looked back at Maia. He was trying _so hard_ to hold back a toothy smile. “You think I’m good looking?”

Maia rolled her eyes and tried to keep her cheeks from warming up. “Don’t get cocky. Mesmerizing people are mesmerizing people.”

Maia wanted to punch herself. Why had she said that? _Holy shit._ She just called Jace _mesmerizing._ Magnus and Simon would never let her hear the end of it.

Jace was still staring at Maia even though she started preparing drinks again and serving people their food. She was so angelic--that was the only way Jace knew how to describe her at the moment--in the way she moved and the way she looked and Jace was in so damn deep that all the feelings in his chest could make him implode. Eventually, Jace willed himself to get back to cleaning, but the smile never left his face.

“You mesmerize me, too,” Jace said.

 

* * *

 

“Okay, but listen. He’s mesmerizing, Bat. Are you listening? He’s beautiful.”

Bat couldn’t help but smile, albeit a bit sympathetically, at Simon. Simon tends to get transparently emotional when he’s tipsy. He’s starting to slur his words, but Bat really can’t stop him when the most Simon does when drunk is talk about how much he loves Maia and how much he likes this new guy of his.

Speaking of Simon and Maia’s new guy, Bat doesn’t even know who he is.

“Who is this again?” Bat asked before taking a swig of his beer.

“Jace Lightwood.”

Bat laughed. “That white boy? Jesus.”

“ _Mira_ ,” Simon slurred slightly. “Maia and I like him a lot. I don’t need your judgement.”

“Then you won’t get it,” Bat assured. “How’s the song coming along?”

“Oh, terribly,” Simon replied with a sigh. “You’d think with all these sappy emotions I’m feeling, I could write a good song, but the lyrics aren’t coming to my head.” Simon looked at his almost-empty bottle. “I think I need another beer.”

“Hold on now,” Bat said, putting a hand on Simon’s wrist. “Let’s not get carried away. Maybe the inspiration will hit after only one drink. You haven’t touched neither your lyric book nor your sheet music yet.”

“True,” Simon agreed. He contemplated getting another drink or pulling out his books, but because Bat seemed to convinced Simon could try to work things out right now, he complied. Simon stood for a moment, lyric book now in hand, thinking about what exactly he wanted to write about.

Bat, used to seeing his friend in his brainstorming state, offered his help. “What are you thinking of right now? Spit it out, don’t hold anything back.”

“I feel light,” Simon replies. “I don’t know if it’s the alcohol finally setting or if it’s me getting all up in my feelings, but I feel like I’m on cloud nine.” He sways a bit, closing his eyes and relishing in his own emotions. “I could write an Arctic Monkeys song right now, man… ‘I wanna be your vacuum cleaner.’ Who came up with that shit? Absolutely incredible.”

Bat let out a soft chuckle before taking another swig from his bottle. He should probably head back to his dorm soon, but he can’t leave Simon while he’s just starting to get his creative juices flowing. “What else do you feel?”

“I feel _good_ ,” Simon says. “Sure, maybe I don’t have this song down at the moment, but everything else is just so great. I’m happy with Maia, Jace gives me this feeling in my stomach that makes me feel like I’m having a middle school crush again, but in a _good_ way. I feel like I’m a fire in the rain, hanging on every flame despite the negatives that may come my way.”

“That’s a good line,” Bat says with a smile.

Simon gasps softly, mouth shaped like a small ‘o’. “What would I do without you, Bartholomew?” he says, and he rushes to his desk and starts scribbling down the words that just came out of his mouth before he can forget.

Bat considers his work done.

 

* * *

 

Jace can’t wish any harder to be done with work, especially since Maia’s shift ends an hour earlier than his. The Hunter’s Moon is lively and full of so much spirit, but Maia seems to take all of the energy with her once she walks out the door.

But spirit and liveliness come in different forms, and Jace is surprised to see Isabelle walking into the bar at such a late hour. He wonders to himself when his baby sister stopped being such a recluse. Fucking STEM majors.

Isabelle smiles once she meets Jace’s eyes, and she makes her way to sit on the barstool. She takes a small look at the rest of the Moon, registering the small amount of bodies in the vicinity. It’s a school night, so no wonder there aren’t as many people as there could be at this time. “ _¿No estás tan preocupado hoy,_ eh?” she asks, and Jace nods in agreement.

“What brings you here? I’m glad you finally decided to step outside of your little lab.”

“I was _going_ to tip you, you fucking brat, but I guess not.” Isabelle never had very strong threats.

“Querulousness will get you nowhere, my darling sister,” Jace said with a chuckle, and Isabelle only huffed. “What can I get you to drink?”

“Who said I wanted a drink?” Izzy is always such a smartass. Right now, Jace only finds it endearing. Once her smile leaves her lips, she tells her brother that she’ll have a Shirley Temple. Jace internally pokes fun at her heavy sense of responsible drinking. Jace finishes preparing her drink and she asks, “Have you made any progress on your song?”

“I think I’ve got it all down right now,” Jace replies. “The actual musicalities need some tweaking, but it’s nothing I can’t handle. The piano’s my best friend, after all.”

“That’s my brother,” Izzy says proudly.

“How are you holding up?” Jace asks. “You don’t visit me at work. The only time you’ve stepped foot in the Moon was when we had a family dinner with Luke.”

Isabelle shrugs slightly. “I guess I never realized how much I work. I desperately needed to step off campus, and I couldn’t think of anywhere else to go.”

Jace turns around to look at the clock. “Well, I’m off in about fifteen minutes. I just need to finish cleaning these glasses, and then Tato can close up. How about I treat you to an early breakfast?”

“Jace, it’s one in the morning.”

“Neither of us have class until noon tomorrow, and it’s not like you get much sleep anyway,” Jace retorts as he points a newly-dried glass at Isabelle. He hangs the last of the wine glasses and continues to work on the beer glasses. Izzy rolls her eyes and she can’t help but admit that her brother is right, although she doesn’t dare say that out loud.

“Should we pick up some food for our poor, poor big brother?” Isabelle suggests.

“You know he doesn’t like to stay up past 11pm.”

“But with that thesis?”

“You’re absolutely right. God, he needs our help.”

 

* * *

 

“I need your help,” Maia said quietly. She felt borderline pathetic, especially with this dilemma--although it wasn’t really a dilemma. Maia thinks she’s overreacting. Be still, her beating heart.

“Oh?” Luke said, a smirk on his face. “However can I help you today?”

Maia looked up at Luke, her eyes almost pleading. Almost. She wasn’t quite there yet. Both she and Luke knew very well that she probably wouldn’t ever get to that point. “You’ve known Jace for a few years now,” she said. She didn’t say anything further, and the smirk on Luke’s face softened to a small smile.

“I honestly haven’t known him that much longer than you have,” he says after taking a small sip of his soda.

Maia looks back down at her lap. It was much harder to maintain eye contact with her as they sat in Luke’s police car, having their weekly lunch in the parking lot of some fast food joint. Luke didn’t push. “You’ve known him since he was like, eighteen,” she says.”

“But you guys are both juniors, right?”

“I only met him this year.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, _oh._ Why else would I come to you for advice, Garroway?”

Luke takes a rather begrudging sip of his drink this time. He’d known Maia for many years now, and he definitely told her of Maryse and her four children when he’d met them, but he had never needed to tell Maia _about_ his stepchildren. If Luke can recall, the one thing of significance that he’d said of them is that two of them were Maia’s age, both attending NYU just like her. But that was three years ago, and Maia never needed to meet them, so she never did.

And she’d gotten along just fine until she decided to catch feelings for Jace Lightwood.

“What about him do you want to know?” Luke asked after a beat of silence.

Maia sighed. “I just--am I being foolish? I keep doubting myself and my own intuition whenever I think about him. Some part of me thinks that I like him only for Simon, because Simon is absolutely _whipped_ , but then I see him at work and he’s so stupidly endearing.” Luke hums. That sounds very much like Jace. “And he’s just… really sweet. And he makes me happy, although we have limited time together. And I _want_ more time with him. But I don’t have the proof telling me that it’s worth it.”

“I think you have all the proof you need.”

Maia looked up at Luke once again. She frowned slightly, and then took a bite of her burger.

Luke took this as an opportunity to continue speaking. “You had the same doubts about Simon before you two started dating, remember? Look at how happy you are, Maia. What’s stopping you from making yourself even more happy with Jace as well? I can speak highly of Jace if you want me to, but you’re already doing that for yourself. What’s stopping you from going for it?”

Maia shrugs. “I guess I’m just skeptical after… you know.”

“You’re allowed to be wary,” Luke assured. “But I’m pretty sure you know in your heart that this, Jace, can be good for you. Follow your gut, Maia.”

“Thanks, Luke,” Maia said softly, a lot more at ease.

“I can give him _the talk_ , if it makes you feel better,” Luke offered. He looked straight ahead, smiling to himself. “Giving my own son the shovel talk! Ha!”

Luke was absolutely ridiculous. Maia couldn’t help but snort.

 

* * *

 

Simon snorted. He fucking _snorted_ , and Jace couldn’t find a hint of regret in any part of his body for acting like a complete dumbass in front of Simon Lewis because God knows what Jace would do to hear Simon laugh like that again. “Do you normally leave your keyboard on sound effect mode when you compose?”

Jace felt a blush creeping onto his cheeks. “Sometimes I start writing a piece with a little ‘ _hyuh!’_ you know?” he replied with a lopsided smile.

Simon laughed again--he might not have snorted this time, but Jace relished in the sound anyway. Simon was grinning like a fool right now, and Jace was almost painfully aware of the moments when he just _saw_ Simon. The same happens with Maia too, which is almost worse because Jace actually has work to do when he’s with Maia. But he cherishes every single time he gets to experience these moments. He looks at Simon and he sees the sun in his smile, he looks at Maia and he sees the moonlight in her eyes, and every moment leaves him more enamored than he ever thought possible.

“Alright, alright,” Jace finally chides, cutting through the humorous air around them. “You said you were gonna help me with my piece.”

“Yes, yes, of course,” Simon says, carefully sliding closer to Jace on the couch so that he was directly in front of the keyboard. He still hadn’t stopped smiling. “Let me see what you have so far?”

Jace gets up from the couch to look for his backpack that he discarded _somewhere_ in the living room of his apartment, and then scavenges through his papers to find the sheet music _without_ lyrics on them--how embarrassing would it be for Simon to help compose a song about him? He manages to hand the papers to Simon, although they’re slightly crumpled and Simon can see the many pencil marks of discarded notes that weren’t erased completely.

Simon finds this awfully adorable.

He attempts to play the chords that Jace has written down, even though Simon is much more comfortable with strings than percussion. They continue working together on perfecting Jace’s song; Simon will suggest making a note sharp or perhaps utilizing staccato notes, and Jace will try it out for him. Simon almost feels bad for providing a lot of criticism for the instrumentals. Jace is a brilliant pianist, and Simon feels like he shouldn’t say anything about his music, but Jace--as always--is very charming and extremely appreciative of Simon’s point of view.

“I’m actually really glad that you came here to help me,” Jace admits shyly once Simon decides to make his way back home. “My siblings are absolutely tone deaf! Not to mention my brother’s really busy with law school shit, so he won’t even give me the time of day unless I get him food. My sister, on the other hand, is just completely hopeless when it comes to music. She always sings out of tune whenever she hears a song that she likes on the radio. I don’t think she realizes.”

A door opens from the bedroom past the living room and a small pillow is launched at Jace’s head with almost impeccable aim. Isabelle, Jace explains, and Simon lets out a small chuckle. Jace feels bad for not disclosing that his siblings would be home when Simon came over to their apartment, but Simon insisted that he didn’t mind. Especially since the thrown pillow has left Jace with an adorably messy head of hair. He has to stop himself from tucking the misplaced strands behind Jace’s ear.

“What about your parents?” Simon can’t seem to stop himself from asking. Conversation with Jace is so easy.

Jace shrugs, a small smile on his lips. “I don’t think I ever heard my dad listening to music or showing an interest in it, but he doesn’t like anything fun. My mom would sing lullabies to me when I couldn’t sleep, so I guess that initially sparked my taste in music. But she played a lot of Latin music around the house. I’m just barely coming to know the words of her favorite songs. My sister and my baby brother know them all by heart. Even my stepdad knows them, which is kind of really embarrassing because he doesn’t speak Spanish either.”

“You don’t speak Spanish?”

“Well, I understand it just fine,” Jace assured, mostly to himself. “My dad is Portuguese, so I understand that language too. But I guess it was hard for ten-year-old me to pick up either language with a satisfactory accent, so I just…let it be. But beware! Don’t talk shit about me.”

“Why would I ever?” Simon asked.

“I don’t know, maybe you decide to complain to my siblings about me next time you come over,” Jace said nonchalantly.

 _Next time._ Simon played the words over and over in his head before he finally replied, “You think there’ll be a next time?”

Jace suddenly froze. He silently thanked himself for having leaned on the threshold as he was bidding Simon goodbye, otherwise he might have collapsed from the embarrassment. But he had to be real with himself--this is what Jace wants.

“I’d like to think there will be plenty of next times,” Jace whispers.

There have been many times in which Simon has acted solely on his impulses, but rarely does he ever agree with what his brain first tells him to do. This seems to be one of those times--Simon is looking into Jace’s eyes, and his heart is beating so quickly he feels like it might actually burst, and his mind is screaming _kiss him kiss him kiss him_ , so Simon does just that.

It was soft and quick, so much that Jace was barely even able to register what had happened. Simon had already pulled away and was readjusting the strap of his guitar case on his shoulder. He turned slightly, still looking at Jace as he started to make his way down the hall and into the elevator.

“Here’s to next time,” Simon says, with a new glow to his eyes that Jace hadn’t seen before. When he looked up at him like that, Jace felt his heart skip a beat.

 

* * *

 

Maia didn’t expect to feel her heart skip a beat, especially not during closing. What worse time to experience an emotion as soft as adoration than while on the job? And yet, here she was.

“I just think,” Jace continued, “that this is a pointless and redundant argument. Caffeine is caffeine! Whether you prefer it in the form of tea or coffee is completely up to the consumer. The beauty of it all is there are so many different varieties of each beverage. You don’t need to argue about which one is _better_.”

Maia really was so _gone_ to be feeling this way about a boy talking about tea and coffee.

She and Jace each picked up a trash bag and made their way out the back into the alley. “Which do you prefer, then?” she asked, and Jace shot her a look as he propped the door open and held it so she can pass by.

“Have you not listened to a single word I said? I’m wounded, Maia, truly.”

“No, you dork,” Maia laughed. “Of course I was listening. I just wanna know your stance on the issue.”

Maia hoisted the trash bag over her shoulder and threw it into the dumpster, then turned around to look at Jace. He was still pondering his answer.

“I don’t have a favorite,” he said finally.

“I don’t believe you,” Maia said, a little coyly.

Jace rolled his eyes as he smiled. He stepped a little closer to the dumpster and threw the trash bag into it, then putting his fists on his hips as he looked back at Maia. “Fine. I guess I prefer tea.”

“A fucking shame,” Maia tutted with a smile. “I was about to invite you to my favorite coffee place.”

Jace hadn’t realized that he stepped closer to Maia. In every aspect, he was completely and utterly drawn to her. Maia was the moon, and he was the waves of the oceans, and with every passing second he felt like he needed her so much closer.

“I did just tell you that I love both,” he said, his voice reaching a lower volume. “That can still be arranged.”

Maia was stepping closer too. She wasn’t a child--she knew what was bound to happen, and she was going all in at this point. There was no holding back what she felt about Jace anymore. She didn’t want to hold anything back.

“I guess it can,” she replied just as softly as Jace had. “Although it depends on how you feel about coffee breath.”

“Ah, you see, tea provides different results--”

Maia shook her head, smiling a toothy smiling, and quickly leaned in. Jace immediately shut up of course, taking in the feeling of Maia’s lips on his, moving his hands from his own hips so they could rest on hers. Maia wrapped her arms around his neck, and as she kissed Jace she knew that _this_ , this was something made out of her best dreams.

The only thing that wasn’t part of her dreams was kissing a cute boy right next to a dumpster. It was truly the epitome of romance.

 

* * *

 

“Clearly, this is the epitome of romance,” Alec deadpanned.

“I think it’s really sweet,” chimes Isabelle as she’s making her way back to her bedroom from the kitchen, a cup of freshly brewed coffee in hand.

“Whatever,” Alec mutters. He’s had enough of this “sweet” behavior. He just wishes that his brother and the other two can actually get a room for once, because he’s really trying to focus on this thesis of his--he doesn’t need those three fooling around and being in love while he’s working, and no, he’s _not_ bitter that he hasn’t seen his own boyfriend in too long of a while, thank you very much.

This was probably the fourth time that he had come to their apartment to see his brother and his significant others fast asleep on the large couch in their living room. Did they not have class? Did Maia and Jace not have a job to attend within the next few hours? Alright, perhaps he could understand Maia and Jace taking a nap before their shared night shift, but Alec couldn’t fathom why Simon was also on the couch, ruining his sleeping schedule so he can nap with the other two.

Love, Alec supposes.

Love was gravity that held Maia, Simon, and Jace together, and the three of them wouldn’t have it any other way.

**Author's Note:**

> in case you didn't pick it up nightshade was the song that simon was writing asdaksj and i was thinking that jace's song was either gonna be venus or stardust by new politics?? probably the former ajsdkasj but god i'm soft this has been a wip since like december of 2017 and it's september 2018 now and shadowhunters hasn't come back to me yet but I MISS MY KIDS okie thank you for reading!!!


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